


The Pack Survives

by alskdjfhg



Category: A Song of Ice and Fire - George R. R. Martin, Game of Thrones (TV)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-11-07
Updated: 2014-01-31
Packaged: 2017-12-31 18:42:00
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 4,714
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1035093
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/alskdjfhg/pseuds/alskdjfhg
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Ned Stark manages to escape the dungeons beneath the Red Keep thanks to an eight legged friend and returns to his lady.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Written for feels on the best couple in Westeros that were given too little time together :(  
> Yes I realise there are serious plot holes and inconsistencies but the purpose of this is not to provide a tight/complex story (leave it to GRRM) but instead to provide heart-melting fluff and loin-aching sexiness regarding NedCat. Wrote this to try and abate the pain of Canon.

**Catelyn**

As Catelyn Stark returned to her tent she sighed. A hundred leagues I have ridden, and for what? The Baratheon’s were at war with each other as much as with the Lannisters. I have failed Robb… I have failed everyone who has relied on me… oh Ned! She had shuddered the thoughts away at the feast; it would simple not do to think of her husband. The grief weighed her down like a cloak sewn in lead but she could not give into it. Whenever she did she broke under the strain and there had not been time for that then. She walked to the chest in front of her large cot and pulled out her nightshift.

The sound of rumbling voices and cheering erupted outside the well-furnished tent. The feast was still raging on as she expected it would more many hours. She had left very early. Perhaps discourteous that had been, she reflected, but Catelyn didn’t care in that moment. She wanted to cover herself in under furs for only there would she allow herself to weep. In her dreams she saw images of Winterfell, of her sweet boys; Robb crownless playing at sword, Bran climbing the keep’s stone walls and Rickon wobbling around, clutching at her skirts, squealing happily. She would dream her dear girls were safe in her arms once more, Arya with her bruises and Sansa with her dreams. She would see them all to their beds, even Robb, then return to her chamber to find Ned waiting there, in her bed, a warm smile etched into the face she had once thought of as so solemn. She would listen to his deep chuckled as he watched her hastily remove her garments until she lay next to him. She could feel his warmth in her dreams, something she would never experience again.

She was nearly unconscious in a sea of furs when a sound from outside dragged her back to reality with a crash. It seemed as though the guards were just outside her tent, only surely they would still be feasting she thought. Catelyn shivered, and it was not from the cold. Thirteen years in Winterfell had made these southern autumn nights feel almost warm in comparison. The noises stopped suddenly and Catelyn thought perhaps she had imagined them in the first place. I am turning mad with grief she told herself. I am empty stomached and sleep-deprived. These sounds are pure imaginings of my widow’s madness. She closed her eyes again before she definitely heard someone outside the entrance of her tent. Fear gripped her suddenly, forcing her up. She grabbed a fruit knife from the table before backing slightly into the corner. “Who goes there” Thankfully, the shakiness of her grip didn’t translate to her voice. Dressed only in her thin shift, she had rarely felt so vulnerable before.

Fool she thought, how could be so stupid as to risk your safety just so you could wallow in your grief. “Cat…!” The word was spoken softly and deeply and Catelyn’s heart began to pump even harder in her chest. So familiar she thought, realizing she couldn’t move, feeling a strange sensation in her belly. The drapes of the entrance pushed open but Catelyn didn’t flinch, in fact she found herself moving towards the intruder, the knife dropping from her grip. She didn’t even realize she had begun to sob as the figure entered her tents, worn and weathered but most certainly the man she loved with all her heart, her Ned that she had thought gone forever. He quickly stumbled towards her and their bodies met in a collision that nearly knocked her down, had he not wrapped his arms so tightly around her. Her mind could not move fast enough, all she knew is that she was holding her Ned and she was sobbing into his neck. He was crying too she realized as her awareness increased, his face was buried in her hair and he whispered her name into her ear. Oh it sounded so sweet her heart nearly burst. “Oh my Cat, my love… how I have missed you.” He pulled his face so that it in front of hers and her blue eyes met with glistening gray ones, such tenderness and desperation in their smoky depths. “How is it you are here my love… they took you away from me” she sounded dazed, tears still leaking from her eyes. “They took an imposter… Varys the eunuch freed me. I’m here now Cat. I failed out daughters but I will never fail you again.” he whispered, one hand stroking her cheek, the other instinctively tangling up in her deep auburn tresses.

He was never dead, she realized, he was always coming back to her. She let herself truly cry now and he wrapped her in his arms again, kissing the tears as the fell from her eyes. “Oh Ned, I thought you gone. It’s been harder than I could bear”. They held each other like that, wrapped deeply in eachother’s embrace for some time before Catelyn lifted her face from where it had been nestled into his neck savoring his scent, and kissed him softly on the lips. She felt Ned weaken and sigh before returning the kiss with more fervor. He needs me she thought. He needs me as I have needed him for so long. She parted her lips, desperate to deepen the kiss, and he obliged willingly. She felt his tongue in her mouth. Nothing has ever tasted so sweet she thought and tears threatened to come again at the sensation. Ned’s right hand dropped from her head and slowly descended to her waist, where he pulled her even closer, so there was no distance between them. Catelyn couldn’t help as a sound escaped her lips when she felt his need for her against her. If only he could feel her need, she thought.

Suddenly, they broke apart, and Catelyn saw the hunger in his look as he studied her in her thin shift. Then he was pulling it off her leaving her completely naked in front of him. He let out a deep sigh and then pulled her into him again, trailing tender kisses along the nape of her neck. “I have dreamed of this moment for so long” he whispered hoarsely. Catelyn couldn't breath, so she began fumbling at Ned’s clothes, the warm glow that had entered her loins beginning to ache in need. She ripped off his leathers and tunic revealing his bare chest. He had grown much thinner in his imprisonment she noticed, but he was otherwise whole. She rubbed her hands up and down, enjoying the sensation of his bare skin before her hands moved to his breeches. She planted kisses on his chest as she tried to undo the lace. In her desperation however, she simply knotted it worse. Ned moved to help her. There was a once a time where he would have laughed at her and teased her for being so eager, but now he simply ripped the knot, and let her pull his breeches down until he was free from them. As she did so, she took his already hard cock into her hand and stroked it gently, placing a soft wet kiss on its head. He groaned before pulling her up and taking her into his arms and kissing her fiercely.

The sensation was almost too much. To be in a naked embrace with her husband she had thought gone, feeling his bare, warm flesh against hers. He leant down and began to put his mouth on her breast and Catelyn started to make noise in desire. “Oh Ned!” she whimpered as he tongued over her breast. Then he unwrapped one of his hands around her, and brought it to the heat between her thighs. She gasped against his mouth as he lightly pressed a finger in her sex and brushed against her clit teasingly. Just how she had always liked it. His name felt as good on her mouth as his did on her body. It had been so long, she was sure she would find her pleasure very quickly. Then he had scooped up her body and moved her to the bed, continuing to kiss her urgently, as though he was trying to taste all of her. He laid her down and moved on top of her, and began to travel lower until he was planting kisses between her thigh and then... When he began moving his tongue inside her, whilst stroking her thigh gently, Catelyn felt herself come apart quickly, shuddering in fast waves as her pleasure came over her. Oh how I have needed this, she thought. But she hardly felt satisfied.

“Ned I need to have you inside me.” And suddenly he pushed himself above her, almost rough with urgency and she could feel his cock at her entrance. Then he thrust deeply inside her with a low-pitched moan. Catelyn felt her pleasure building again as he grinded into her, moving her hips to meet his movement. But moreso, she felt whole again. She clawed at his back and cried out softly when she came again and not long after, he spilled his seed, her name on his lips. He remained on top of her and she savored the sweet weight it brought, his hot breathing at her ear, his gentle caresses that warmed her heart. Then he rolled off, but making sure she came with him, and then she nestled into him, his arms holding her safely.

After a while she lifted her head slightly, eyes wettening. “I love you, Ned.” She said softly, her voice cracking. “I’m so sorry... I told you to go… all my doing” His grip tightened, “You have no reason to be sorry, my love. This folly was my doing.” She was silent again as he resumed stroking her hair, entangling it in his hands and burying his face into her scalp, breathing her scent. She had almost forgotten how much he adored doing that. “What of the morrow, my lord?” she whispered. He thought a moment. “We ride for Winterfell. Its time we go home, Cat. Its time to put an end to this war.” She felt relief at the thought but… “What of our girls. What of Arya and Sansa?” Catelyn felt Ned tense slightly. This will haunt him for the rest of his days she realized. “I have sent Arya with a night's watch recruiter, she's on her way to Greywater Watch. Howland will look after her until we pick her up on the way.” The words lifted Catelyn’s heart as tears of joy stung her eyes. Her Arya, her sweet willful girl she thought lost forever, she would have her in her arms too. “And Sansa”, continued Ned, “I am told Robb has the Kingslayer… we will trade hostages and put an end to this once and for all.” Catelyn lifted her head and kissed Ned, thanking him in all the ways she could not say. They made love again after, more slowly this time, as though relearning each other’s bodies, relishing in the simplicity of each other’s touch. Then, wrapped in her husband’s arms, Catelyn Stark fell asleep, dreaming of Winterfell and her babes and the life she would soon have again.


	2. Chapter 2

**Eddard**

They had woken before daybreak that morning, and continued their journey with their small guard of men. They had decided three nights past that it would not be wise for even all of Catelyn’s small guard that had come to Storm’s End rode with them, it would not do to draw attention to the man the whole realm had presumed dead and if Renly were to discover his livelihood, it would serve to complicate things immensely. The first two days of riding had been frightful; they had almost been discovered and the passing through war ravaged lands was truly dangerous. Today however Ned felt slightly more at ease. He rode up beside Catelyn and took her hand silently as he watched the sunrise that stained the sky and reflected on the river ahead. It was a truly stirring sight, he thought. As much as he dreamed of the soft quiet snows in the Godswood he could not deny the beauty of a morning Southern sky. Yet he still yearned for home in its cold comfort. And most of all he yearned for his children, the sons he missed so dearly and his sweet daughters that he had failed. He wished to see Robb again. Fear had mingled with a strong pride in his chest when Catelyn had whispered softly of his doings the previous night. He has grown so much, thought Ned, my own boy leading an army… yet he is still too young. He thought of Bran as well, his poor loving son who would never become the knight he so wished to be, and misery filled his heart. Robb had told Catelyn that the joyfulness had left him when he woke from his fall. I should have stayed with him, he scolded himself, and I should have been there for him. He sadly wondered if Rickon would be angered at him, his fierce little son who had been so small, yet already showing much of the wolf’s blood. Ned would have gladly wept in his cell every time he realized that his youngest might not even remember him, or ever properly know his father. And then there was Jon. Promise me, Ned. Lyanna’s voice, as soft as a ghost yet somehow as clear as it had been 15 long years ago, lying in a bed of birthing blood holding her son against her and clutching at Ned’s hand with such weakness and desperation mingled as one. The familiar sadness flooded through him. That was his curse. He always kept his word. “Never tell him Ned… he must never know! Promise me, Ned.” The way her eyes, so like his own, and those of the son she held in her arms had looked at the babe told him he had no choice. “They’ll take him Ned, they’ll kill him. Please. Promise me, Ned. Promise me!” I have always kept my promise he thought, despite everything it cost. I betrayed my lady wife, who deserved far, far better, and then there was Jon. From a Targaryen prince to a Snow, spending all his days with much honour and no glory, never to love a woman or father a son. Promise me, Ned. The words had haunted him for fifteen years. He deserves to know. He needs to know. It took my imprisonment to realize. I have always kept my promise Lyanna, but Gods help me if this isn’t the right thing to do.

Catelyn squeezed him gently. “What troubles you my Lord?” she said, her voice soft as a kiss. Ned lifted his face again. He had always been told he had a face carved of ice, able to hide even the deepest of emotions but Catelyn always seemed to know his feelings. He gazed at her and smiled sadly. “I have you next to me, my love, and we are going home. Nothing is amiss.” She returned his smile sympathetically before releasing her grip. What have I done to deserve such a woman? Not a person in the world knew him as she did, and yet he had harbored a truth from her all these years. In the first few moons at Winterfell together, Ned had thought she would never come to love him. Yet for her sake, and their small son’s, he had refused to give up and in soon enough time, their love had developed a passion and had been as true as any. And over the years their affections had deepened considerably. They had come to rely on each other in all matters, forming a bond that he had never thought possible. We should never have separated, he reflected, I cannot survive without you, Cat.

They rode hard that day, eager to cross the war-ravaged lands with a quick speed to get to relative safety. By dusk, they were pacing through deserted forestlands, when finally it grew too dark to go any further. “We’ll camp here for the night. Someone set up a tent for my lady wife.” Catelyn looked at him frowning. “They will do no such thing, my lord. We will need to move quickly on the morrow and that will waste time. I have slept fine outside these past few nights.” Ned knew better than to argue with her. It may not have been proper for a lady to sleep in the open amongst other men but Ned knew Catelyn better than anyone and she wasn’t anything if not pragmatic. “Very well. Set up fire then.”

The party of ten men around them got to work whilst Ned left her to ensure the camps security. In truth he did not like the idea of Catelyn sleeping in the open. He had only just got her back and didn’t like the mere thought of her being in danger. But he had also selfishly thought that they perhaps would bed like they had at Renly's camp, obviously keeping silent, and if he was honest the thought had kept him going for many of the last few leagues. It had been torture for him, to be so close to her, yet unable to touch her but for a chaste kiss or a squeeze of her hand. When he returned they ate oats and water, as well as some pheasant they had taken from Renly’s camp. As one by one, men began to rest, the quiet came over the wood again, replacing the discussion and planning of the journey ahead before. Catelyn and Ned were the last two awake.

“Come my love we should sleep.” She whispered next to him. She had been leaning into him, his arm around her protectively and her hand resting comfortably on his thigh. He rose and pulled her up with him and then they walked over to where Catelyn had laid out their furs, slightly away from the rest of the group, at the foot of a great wierwood. Ned lay down first on his side and then Catelyn fitted her back against his body and he wrapped his arms around her tightly. She let out a chuckled. “I’m not going anywhere if that’s what you fear. But if you continue holding me so tightly I may choke.” She jested. He squeezed her tighter playfully, before loosening his hold. His face was buried in her thick auburn tresses. He would always remark on how he loved Cat’s hair… the way it shined in the fire, the way it smelled of her, how it feels against my skin, how it falls loosely on her nakedness, barely concealing her wondrous breasts… his thoughts took over and before he could stop himself, he pressed his mouth at the nape of her neck and his hand began stroking her front through her thick layer of clothing. Feeling her body respond to him, he deepened his kissing on her neck and lowered his hand.

A cough sounded and Ned had to remind himself that there were men sleeping not ten yards away. She sighed disappointedly when his hand that had been softly stroking her sex through her dress stopped. “You are very cruel my lord.” He could hear the frustration in her whisper. For a moment they lay still. Then she bent her arm back, clutching at his bottom and began to move, slowly grinding her bottom against him, breaching any distance between them. He was now fully hard and as she continued to rock against him he could do nothing to stop her. But then she did stop and relaxed gently into him again, growing still again. He moved his mouth to her ear, his cock now aching with need. “Now it is you that is being cruel, my lady.” He growled quietly to her. 

The loud snoring of the men drowned out the sound of their voices. “I apologize lord Eddard. Please excuse me, I must go and make my water in the woods.” Suddenly, she was out of his arms, padding across the earthen floor towards the thick forest. Panic struck through him suddenly. “Cat,” he whispered angrily, “what are you doing. It’s not safe.” Then he was up and after her, but she already had quite a few yards on him and by the time he caught her, they were well away from the camp and he noticed that she had undone her gown’s laces. He caught his breath and looked at her heatedly. “Don’t be a fool Catelyn, these are dangerous woods. Do you know that outlaws make their moves at night? Do you know what would happen…” He trailed off. She was removing her gown completely now, leaving only her thin shift, through which here nipples were visible in the moonlight, hard bumps catching the material. He imagined what they’d look like bare with the soft light illuminating her skin... he had barely had time to drink in her appearance the night of their passionate coupling. Then she lifted its material and threw it over her head, letting it pool at her feet. Her soft white skin shone and the auburn on her head stood out in the light, as did the hair covering her sex. “Ned.” she said, so tenderly that he felt his anger abate immediately. He sighed, beginning to remove his clothing and she joined him to help, her hands moving gently over his body until he stood before her, naked as she was. He moved forward and clasped her face in his hands, bending down to kiss her. She opened her mouth and deepened the kiss, and slowly wound her arms around his waist, her arms soft and smooth as milk against him. She rubbed her hands from his shoulders down slowly to his bottom, grabbing the flesh there. He wound his hand through her hair, knotting it through his fingers and used the other to caress her back, gently play with her breast, going lower and lower until it reached its destination between her legs. “You’re so beautiful, Cat” he whispered against her skin as he pushed his fingers into the burgeoning heat of her sex, already slick with desire he realized as her honey covered his fingers. Suddenly, the sweet taste of her mouth just wasn’t enough; he needed to taste her everywhere. He pulled away from her, and dropped to his knees placing his mouth just above her mound of hair, and as soon as she realized what he intended to do,

Catelyn began moaning softly in anticipation. He softly planted kisses on the soft skin of her inner thigh, gripping her by the waste before pulling her down onto his mouth. He felt her knees buckle slightly as he put is tongue between her lips and flicked it around her sensitive area, the familiar taste of her bringing a comfort to him. I have missed her more than I can say he thought, just as she began to tremble beneath his tongue and the contractions of pleasure he so liked to feel on his cock came over her. “Oh Gods, Ned!” she cried out, clawing into his scalp, her other hand covering her mouth as her pleasure engulfed her. Muscles weakened, she lost her balance, and fell putting her weight on him. He fell back onto the cold earth laughing, and she collapsed on top of him. For a moment she gave him the most burning of looks that made him want to flip her over and bury himself deep inside her but then she straddled him and guided him inside her with her hand. The sensation her made him gasp. As she rocked above him, hands on his shoulders, her hair tumbled down like a waterfall over them, the feeling of her around him driving him unbearably close to the edge. The pleasure was nearly at a peak and he knew he couldn’t last much longer. He grabbed her hips and Catelyn let out a small, excited shriek as her flipped her over, and he began grinding into her even more deeply. His mouth was at her ear, “Come for me Cat!” he groaned. It did not take long after before she was moaning deeply and the pulsing waves he felt against him were more than enough to finish him. He released in to her, breathing her name heavily into her ear and felt the usual heat overcome him, despite the crisp air. As he rolled off her, he sat up against a nearby trunk, gathering Catelyn into his embrace against his chest, feeling her skin begin to goose prickle. After a long moment of unwinding together Ned broke the quiet. “That was not behaviour befitting of someone of your birth Lady Catelyn.” He smiled down at her wickedly, and she responded by returning his smile. “I only hope I have succeeded in fulfilling my wifely duties, my lord, as befits my house words” she teased. She reached up, giving him a soft kiss on the lips before standing up and moving towards their clothes strewn on the ground. “We should return before these good men realize how wanton their liege’s lady truly is.” He chuckled deeply as he was handed his clothes. “I wouldn’t have it any other way, my love.”


	3. Chapter 3

**Catelyn**

Ned held her hand gently as they made there way back to the camp. At first they thought themselves lost; it seemed that in her haste she had truly gone too far from the camp. But all was well when Ned spotted the glow of embers in the distance. The sounds of the forest filled the air. Owls hooted, trees rustled, a nearby stream burbled… but suddenly Catelyn heard something that made ice grip her heart.  
Voices.  
Ned had heard it too because suddenly where his hand had been lightly holding hers, he gripped her tightly. Catelyn did not know how far away the voices were but by the sounds of it they were on the other side of the camp. Catelyn could hear the faint trod of horses as well now.  
Oh Gods, please no…  
“…the mountain was in such a way the other day he raped the lord’s wife in front of him before he shut him up.” The sound of laughter erupted around. “Now let’s see what we have here”. They found the camp. Gregor Clegane’s men. Ned pulled her back into the shadows of a large oak tree so that they were hidden. She had begun to tremble violently, so she put her arms around Ned, who was blocking her so that she could not see. Then she heard the whistle of tens of arrows and by the jolt she felt in Ned, she knew they had hit their men. Then Ned was grabbing her again and pulling her in the other direction, away from the camp and the mountain’s men, and soon they were running at full speed. Only when they had been running for a long while did they slow down. Catelyn, breathless from fear and exertion, looked desperately at Ned who seemed to be searching for something in the darkness.  
“Ned what are we going to do!” she cried out. She followed him as he went down a slope, embedded with tree roots and he suddenly stopped, sitting down. He reached for Catelyn, pulling her down with him, letting her sit in his lap as his arms enveloped her. She nestled her head into the crook of his neck before she let the tears come. He held her tighter as she cried into him.  
“Don’t worry my love they won’t find us. I have navigated many a forest I shall get us out of here alive.” He said soothingly. “We can sleep here tonight, if anyone happens by they will not see us.” Catelyn nodded and tried to muster up a smile for him. He gently pulled her down with him and wrapped her in his arms, and began kissing her head comfortingly.  
We’ll be alright. Catelyn thought. We’ll be safe.


End file.
